Connections between Energy Consumption, Economic Growth, and Pollution: A Bibliometric Analysis from the Perspective of Climate Action and Public Awareness

The aim of this paper is to perform a bibliometric analysis to identify the main scientific contributions on the interrelations and causal relationships between conventional energy consumption, renewable energy consumption, and the level of economic growth and pollution in an interdisciplinary manner for policy impact analysis. The analysis included 971 scientific publications that were indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection and was conducted on 9 August 2024. Using the VOSviewer software tool and bibliographic elements, the main results demonstrate that, in recent years (e.g. 2018-2024), there has been a growing focus among authors on identifying tangible solutions through the formation of research teams and academic collaborations in the fight against pollution. The transition to the use and consumption of renewable energy resources is becoming a pragmatic and beneficial action in the promotion of a clean, sustainable, and carbon-free environment, with a positive and increasing impact on public administration, urban planning, and education in both the public and private sectors. Furthermore, our results demonstrate that these energy-economy-environment interactions are addressed from an interdisciplinary perspective, with many academic publications focusing on specific issues related to public taxation, greening, municipal solid waste, responsible consumption and production, urban planning, and public management.